Among the things that grabbed my attention about the NFL conference championship games are . . .

There are 330 million Americans. There are 32 NFL head coaching jobs. The odds of getting one of them are about 5 million-to-1. That Jack and Jackie Harbaugh’s two sons are both NFL head coaches is incredible. That Jim (49ers) and John (Ravens) will match wits in Super Bowl XLVII (that’s 47) is mind boggling. The proud parents can’t lose in the Super Bowl. They can’t win either. Every thrill will be accompanied by agony.

The bashing of Patriots QB Tom Brady has begun. He can no longer win the “big game” according to his critics. His teams were once 10-0 in playoff games, including three Super Bowls. His teams are 7-7 since winning that third title in 2005. That means Brady has led his teams to 14 playoff games in the last seven years. If that’s bad then, please, send an over-the-hill QB to the Jaguars.

I understand rules to protect quarterbacks, but a late third quarter penalty against the Falcons for literally touching 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick was ridiculous. And may have costs Atlanta the victory. The play flipped the field position and the Falcons never recovered. I’m convinced if the call had been made by a replacement referee we’d still be hearing the screaming.

I’ve already heard more than I care to hear about Ray Lewis’ last game, Joe Flacco’s lack of respect and Kaepernick being the next great QB.

The X-factor in the Super Bowl could well be Ravens wide receiver Anquan Boldin. No NFL receiver repeatedly makes more difficult catches.